Presidential canadidate Donald Trump has indicated that he is planning to appear on the Joe Rogan podcast.
The Republican nominee appeared on the Nelk Boys YouTube channel and when asked by one of the hosts if he would go on Rogan’s show, Trump responded “Oh, sure I would” before adding: “I mean, I think I’m doing it actually.”
Host Kyle Forgeard then asked him: “So you are going to do Joe Rogan?” and Trump responded: “Yeah I am.”
Newsweek contacted representatives for Trump and Rogan by email for comment.
Joe Rogan, left, at a UFC event in Boston, August 18, 2023, and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump at a campaign really in Butler, Pennsylvania, October 5, 2024. Trump has indicated that he will appear on Rogan’s podcast.
AP Photo/Gregory Payan/Alex Brandon, File
Trump went on to ask the Nelk Boys: “What was it that made Joe the best?” Foregeard said he started respecting Rogan for how “he was very outspoken on all the corruption going on” during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“He’s a good guy,” Trump said. “He’s got a good voice. That’s important.”
The Nelk Boys have long been vocal Trump supporters. Forgeard and fellow Nelk Boys host Salim Sirur appeared on stage with Trump at a rally in Las Vegas last month. Forgeard told the crowd that “we need Trump back and we need him back bad.” In 2023, Trump appeared on the group’s Full Send Podcast.
The Nelk Boys began as a prank channel on YouTube in 2010. The group have since expanded to hosting a podcast and selling branded clothing and health supplements.
The group were initially introduced to Trump by UFC president Dana White prior to the 2020 election. Trump was one of the first guests on the group’s podcast, which launched in 2021.
YouTube previously temporarily demonetized the group’s account after they allegedly threw college parties at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
On The Joe Rogan Experience podcast last month, Rogan praised Vice President Kamala Harris‘ political team. Speaking to his guest, comedian Tom Segura, Rogan praised the Harris campaign’s messaging and the Democratic nominee’s debate performance.
Rogan said: “Whoever’s helping her, whoever’s coaching her, whoever’s the puppet master running the strings… They did an amazing job— from the moment Biden drops out, forcing Biden to drop out. Whatever they’re doing, whoever’s writing those speeches, getting her to deliver them, coaching her, she’s nailing it.”
Rogan and Segura compared Harris’ debate performance to a skilled martial artist trapping her opponent. They also suggested Trump had prepared poorly for the debate.
“He’s not working with a team,” Rogan said. “I know he’s doing mock debates. He did one with (former U.S. representative) Tulsi Gabbard. Someone needs to tell him, you’ve got these tiny little windows and you should have all the words ready for those windows. There should be no repeating things.”
Rogan went on to suggest that Trump is “funny like a comic,” but that it might not be a quality that voters are looking for in a president.
“We don’t necessarily want that as the guy with his finger on the button, that’s all it is,” Rogan said. “That’s the thing that freaks people out.”
Rogan’s audience leans to the right, with about 46 percent of his fans identifying as Republicans and only 23 percent as Democrats, according to UnHerd. Rogan had 14.5 million subscribers on Spotify as of March this year, according to Bloomberg.
Rogan and Nelk’s audiences are predominately made up of young men, who seem to be leaning more toward Trump in the presidential race. The New York Times/Siena poll last week found Trump leading among male voters by 11 points. Among the demographic, 42 percent said Trump’s policies would help them personally. Trump was ahead among the same demographic by 2 points in 2020.
Harris has been stronger among female voters in recent polling, particularly among younger women, while Trump has performed better among male voters. MSNBC co-host Joe Scarborough said the Harris campaign needed to do more to reach out to male voters.
Sarah Longwell, publisher of political website The Bulwark, said on the Playbook Deep Dive podcast Friday: “I’m worried this is going to become a boy versus girl election.”
“And that we’re going to move into an environment where the biggest voting indicator is no longer going to be education or geography, it’s simply going to be gender.”
